How WestJet changes & cancellations generally work
The rules in plain language. Your fare decides almost everything once the 24-hour window closes, so we confirm it on the call.
WestJet lets you change or cancel within 24 hours of booking for no fee, but only if your flight is not within the next 24 hours, and a cancellation must be made more than 2 hours before departure. A fare difference can still apply on a change. That is the current wording and airlines revise it, so confirm your exact ticket on the call, but a same-day change of heart on a trip that is still weeks out usually has a clean exit.
UltraBasic has no refund and no future travel credit if you simply cancel. To change it, you first cancel it, which triggers a change fee; your points come back and the rest of the value goes into a Travel Bank credit. The sting: if the same flight and cabin are unavailable on your return leg, the value of that return flight can be lost outright. Know this before you decide anything on UltraBasic.
EconoFlex, PremiumFlex and BusinessFlex change for no change fee, you pay only any fare difference. Econo, Premium and Business allow a change but carry a change fee, plus any fare difference. On a busier flight or date the difference can be real, and sometimes the new flight is cheaper and there is nothing extra to pay. An agent prices the exact move before you commit.
Gold and Platinum WestJet Rewards members pay no same-day-change fee, though UltraBasic is excluded even for them. If you hold status, that can turn a same-day flight move into a free one, so it is worth telling us your tier when we look at options.
If you simply do not fly and do not cancel first, the value of the missed flight is lost, it cannot be refunded or applied as a travel credit. On UltraBasic there is nothing to salvage anyway. If plans change, act inside your fare's window rather than skipping the flight. Even a non-refundable fare is worth more handled than abandoned.
A genuine typo can usually be corrected, but putting a WestJet ticket in a different person's name is a separate matter and is generally not allowed. A correction and a change of traveler are not the same thing. Spot an error early and tell us, because the options only narrow as departure nears, and we confirm what WestJet will do on your exact ticket.
Change and cancellation conditions depend on your fare and how the ticket was issued. We never publish WestJet's amounts because yours is specific to your ticket, an agent quotes the exact figure, and our service fee, before anything is charged. You can always do most of it yourself free at westjet.com or in the WestJet app.
WestJet fares and what each lets you do
Once the 24-hour window closes, the fare you bought decides whether a change or refund is even possible.
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The 24-hour window
- Change or cancel within 24 hours of booking for no fee
- Only if your flight is not within the next 24 hours
- A cancellation must be more than 2 hours before departure
- A fare difference can still apply on a change
After the window (fare decides)
know your fare
- UltraBasic: no refund, no credit, change only by cancelling
- Econo, Premium, Business: change for a fee
- EconoFlex, PremiumFlex, BusinessFlex: change for the fare difference only
- Gold and Platinum: no same-day-change fee, except UltraBasic
On UltraBasic, a change is really a cancel-and-rebook. WestJet's cheapest fare cannot be changed directly, and it returns no cash and no credit if you cancel by choice, so what you paid for a return leg can vanish if that flight is sold out. Before you touch an UltraBasic booking, read us your fare and dates and we will tell you whether changing, rebooking or riding it out actually costs you the least.
Frequently asked
Does WestJet really have a 24-hour free cancellation?+
Can I change my UltraBasic fare?+
What will a change cost on WestJet?+
I misspelled my name on a WestJet ticket, can it be fixed?+
Do you charge to change it for me?+
Contact options
Reach WestJet directly, or let us handle it.
Contact WestJet directly
The airline's own official channels, free.